Reborn with a Necromancer System - Chapter 118

Chapter 118: The Academy
Kai leaned against the cool stone wall, the Umbral Mantle concealing his presence like a living shadow. From within the folds of magic, his consciousness scattered, carried on the eyes of a dozen small undead rats skittering through the Academy grounds.

‘Perfectly Timed’

Today was a free study day. For S-class students at least. Students and staff drifted across the lawns and into lecture halls, free to spend the hours as they pleased. Most of them left the school grounds through the warp gates.

It was the best opportunity.

First Willam. Then Naia.

He considered talking to Emille, but the was quickly swatted from his mind.

He moved unseen between crowds, his form slipping between gaps like smoke. No one noticed the cloaked figure gliding past them, neither student nor seasoned lecturer.

Until Willam.

The boy spun suddenly, sharp blue eyes locking directly onto Kai’s hidden form. His mouth twitched in surprise, but instead of reacting with alarm, he merely smiled.

Impressive, Kai thought. Even the lecturers didn’t notice me.

Dropping the Umbral Mantle with a faint shimmer, Kai stepped fully into view. The illusion fell away, revealing his subtly altered appearance, darker hair, sharper features, slightly taller than before.

Willam’s expression shifted into something complicated, relief, confusion, wariness. He gestured Kai toward a quiet alcove between two towering bookshelves in the courtyard.

“Mirlin…? you’ve changed,” Willam said quietly. His voice had steadied since they last spoke. He was growing up faster than Kai liked to admit.

‘Thinking you’ve lost a friend probably does that.’

Kai offered a thin smile.

“Long story. Let’s just say the headmaster had a hand in it…”

When Kai said as much, Willam pushed him for more information, and so Kai relayed the events of the past couple of weeks with him.

“So… Those wanted posters are of you?”

“Yes. This illusion magic has kept me safe for now, though.”

Willam studied him intently. “You don’t look worse. Just… different.”

Kai shrugged, a casual motion that didn’t match the heaviness in his chest.

“I had to adapt. Or die.”

“But you’re maintaining that constantly?”

“Yes.”

“That has to be tough on your mana reserves. You’d never have a chance to regain it.”

“I have my ways.”

Willam didn’t ask for details. Instead, he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Kai’s waist in a sudden, tight hug.

Kai stiffened, surprised.

“I thought you were dead. We all did,” Willam mumbled. “Everyone said you ran away, or were taken… or killed.”

Kai rested a hand on Willam’s shoulder.

“I was taken, but I’m not that easy to get rid of.”

When Willam finally let go, he looked down to Kai with a fierce, almost reckless gleam in his eye.

“So… how are we going to kill the headmaster?”

Kai blinked. ‘Straight to the point, huh?’

He glanced around, lowering his voice even further.

“I’m working on it. It’s not something we can rush. They can consume mana itself. I have to find a way around that. Mind doing a little research about any strategy against opponents who can consume the very mana from your spells? Until I figure everything out, you need to be careful. Stay quiet. Stay hidden. If she even suspects you’re a threat…”

Willam’s mouth set into a hard line.

“I’ll put all of my library time into figuring that out. I’ve already got some books in mind that might help.”

“The academy isn’t safe, though…”

“I’m not leaving. Not until I learn everything I can. I need to be ready.”

Kai studied him for a long moment, then gave a slow nod.

“Alright. But you listen to me if I tell you to run. Understand?”

Willam nodded without hesitation. They exchanged a few more quiet words before Kai melted back into the crowd, the Umbral Mantle sliding over him once more.

—

The walk toward the training fields was uneventful, until it wasn’t.

Kai moved along a marble bridge that connected two wings of the Academy when he froze mid-step.

Coming from the opposite end was the Headmaster.

The Devourer.

She moved along the path in dark crimson robes embroidered with gold sigils. Her long white hair was tied back. Every step she took seemed to bend the air around her, like the world itself leaned away.

It still wore the face of the headmaster, or, perhaps, had always been the headmaster.

Kai’s breath caught. Every instinct screamed at him to run, to vanish. But he stood stock-still, making sure the Umbral Mantle held tightly around him. He compressed his mana, the aura of his very life essence, into the thinnest whisper.

For one terrible moment, the Headmaster’s golden eyes swept across the bridge and landed directly where he stood.

Kai’s heart hammered against his ribs. His fingers twitched toward casting spells.

But then ger gaze slid past him.

Her attention locked onto an insect crawling along the stone wall behind him.

She extended one delicate finger, and with a flick, snuffed the creature from existence without a second thought.

She didn’t just flick it away, but obliterated it entirely.

Without a pause, she continued walking, never sparing another glance in his direction.

Kai didn’t move until her footsteps faded completely from earshot. Only then did he let out the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.

‘That was too close. At least I know the mantle definitely works now, though.’

With shaky limbs, he continued across the academy grounds.

He found Naia exactly where he expected: the open training fields.

She was practicing alone, her bare arms outstretched, sweat beading along her brow as she lifted heavy iron spheres through the air with pure gravity magic.

Kai approached silently, still hidden behind an illusory face.

Naia’s instincts were sharper than he anticipated.

The moment he crossed into the range of her mana, she responded.

A pulse of crushing force slammed into him like a tidal wave, sending him flying across the field.

He hit the ground hard, sliding across the gravel until he finally skidded to a halt against the far fence.

His Umbral Mantle collapsed.

“Directional gravity? A nice touch.” Kai coughed.

Groaning, Kai dispelled the illusion, allowing his true features. Not the ones she knew, not of Mirlin Orth, but if Kai Tensen.or at least, the newer ones — to emerge. His hair was darker, his skin richer in color, his eyes sharper.

Naia gasped, dropping the spheres midair.

“Mirlin?!”

She sprinted across the field and dropped to her knees beside him.

Without hesitation, she threw her arms around him, squeezing him so tightly it knocked the remaining breath from his lungs.

This wasn’t a cautious hug like Willam’s.

This was desperate, breaking, all-consuming.

Naia shook against him, sobbing into his chest without restraint.

Kai, stunned, slowly raised his arms and hugged her back.

“It’s okay. I’m okay, and my name’s Kai,” he whispered awkwardly.

When her sobbing lessened, he pulled out a handkerchief from his shadow space and gently wiped her tear-streaked cheeks.

‘Why did I tell her that? I didn’t even tell Willam.’

“Kai?… Not Mirlin?” She sniffed.

“It’s a name I took from my master. My old name wasn’t one that people appreciated very much.”

“I don’t care what your name is, or what you look like. You’re still the same person, right?”

“I am. And I’m sorry I wasn’t there for the Crucible. I’m sorry I left you behind. I’m sorry we never got to have that date I promised you.”

Naia shook her head fiercely.

“You’re here now. That’s all that matters.”

Kai swallowed against the tightness in his throat.

‘Why does she care so much? Why do they both care so much?’

He waited until she calmed enough to listen before briefly explaining his plan to rescue Firra who was imprisoned within the palace.

Naia stiffened. Her tear-reddened eyes narrowed dangerously.

“A girl?” she asked, voice low and suspicious.

Kai blinked, confused. “It’s not what you’re thinking. It’s for a friend. She’s important to someone I owe. Nothing… romantic.”

He didn’t know why he was rushing to explain himself, but Naia visibly relaxed, her mouth twitching into a teasing smile through the remnants of her tears.

“Alright. But if she falls for you, you’re explaining it to her, not me.”

Kai chuckled dryly.

‘Explaining what? Nevermind. It’s not worth the argument or misunderstanding.’

“Deal.”

The tension melted between them, replaced by something warmer, steadier.

For the first time in weeks, Kai allowed himself to believe that maybe, just maybe, he and Kleo weren’t fighting this war alone.